This invention relates in general to golf equipment and, more particularly, to an improved golf club head cover and a method of making the same.
It is a common practice to use head covers on golf clubs, particularly on those clubs referred to as "woods", to protect them from damage when not in use. These head covers are usually made of flexible material such as fabric and are of a generally tubular configuration with one end being open and the other end being closed. There are two basic types of head covers currently in use with an older design being intended for use on woods having steel shafts and a newer design specially designed for use on woods having graphite shafts. The head covers normally used on steel shafted woods are relatively short since steel shafts do not require any special protection. An example of this type of prior art head cover is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,667,716 to John A. Solheim et al.
Unlike their steel shafted counterparts, woods having graphite shafts need special protection for the graphite shafts when they are carried in golf bags. When golf clubs are placed in a golf bag, the golf club heads extend above the top of the golf bag and the golf club shafts are surrounded by and divided into groups by a throat structure including an outer rim and divider bars. U.S. Pat. No. 4,596,328 to John A. Solheim discloses a typical throat structure. Any movement of the golf clubs in the golf bag, such as occurs when the golf bag is being carried, will cause the golf club shafts to rub against the outer rim and the divider bars of the throat structure. In the absence of some form of protection, this rubbing will result in abrasive damage to graphite shafts which mars their appearance.
To alleviate the abrasive damage problem to graphite shafts, the newer design of prior head covers, which are sometimes referred to simply as "graphite head covers", are considerably longer than the head covers used on steel shafted clubs. The additional length of the graphite head covers are intended to cover portions of the graphite shafts which extend down through the throat structure of the golf bag and thus shield those shaft portions from abrasive damage. These prior graphite head covers include a pouch-shaped upper portion for containing a golf club head and a tail portion depending from the upper portion. The pouch shaped upper portion is usually made of flexible material, such as synthetic leather, and the tail portion is of knitted construction which expands and contracts when a golf club head is passed through it as the head cover is installed on or removed from a golf club. Since the tail portion is knitted, it will only expand to a limited extent and although it is relatively slim in comparison to the pouch shaped upper portion, it must be large enough to allow passage of the golf club head. As these prior graphite head covers are used, repeated stretching of the knitted tail portion will cause it to lose its elasticity and when this occurs, the tail portion will permanently increase in diameter.
A golfer frequently cares three or four wood type dubs in a golf bag, and the section of the throat structure in which these clubs are carried is rather crowded when the prior graphite head covers are used. Such crowding often causes the tail portions of the graphite head covers to catch on the outer rim or the divider bars of the throat structure when the clubs are inserted into the golf bag. This problem is aggravated as the tail portions become stretched with use. When these tail portions catch on the throat structure as the clubs are inserted into the golf bag, the tail portions ride up on the shafts and remain bunched up above the throat structure. This, of course, defeats the primary purpose of the tail portions of the graphite head covers.